Not even nine months after opening its casino, Miami Jai-Alai has been hit with a foreclosure lawsuit by the lenders that financed its construction.

ABC Funding, the manager of the loan for several funds, filed a foreclosure lawsuit on Sept. 5 against Florida Gaming Centers and Florida Gaming Corp., the owners of the Jai-Alai facility at 3500 N.W. 37th Ave. in Miami. The building is 193,899 square feet on 7 acres, including 1,500 surface parking spaces.

It also filed a foreclosure lawsuit in St. Lucie County against the same companies over the Fort Pierce Jai-Alai property at 1750 South Kings Highway because it was secured by the same mortgage.

A representative of Florida Gaming declined comment.

Shares of Florida Gaming traded at a 52-week low of 50 cents on Friday after opening at $1. They closed trading at 80 cents. The 52-week high was $5.37 on Sept. 28, 2011.

Florida Gaming obtained the $87 million mortgage to build its 40,000-square-foot casino in April 2011 through ABC Funding, which included participation from Boston-based Summit Partners, JPMorgan Chase Bank (NYSE: JPM), Locust Street Funding and several funds organized by Canyon Capital Advisors.

The loan turned some heads, as Florida Gaming had a market capitalization of only $19.4 million and just $16.6 million in assets at the time it secured the financing, which carried an interest rate ranging from 15.75 percent to 16.50 percent. Freedom Holding, the majority owner of Florida Gaming, pledged all its stock in the company as additional collateral.

It appears that roll of the dice didn’t work out.

The casino at Miami Jai-Alai opened in January with 1,035 Class III slot machines, an expanded poker room, electronic blackjack, roulette, dominoes, new restaurants and a live-event venue. Florida Gaming posted revenue of $33.1 million in the first six months of 2012, but it lost $6.8 million due to higher expenses. It also had more than a dozen construction liens filed against it by the contractors who helped build the casino.

As of June 30, Florida Gaming had $84 million in assets against $100.6 million in liabilities.

Its Securities and Exchange Commission filing for its second quarter results admitted that Florida Gaming missed a principal payment on its loan in July and had $84.1 million outstanding.

Davie office project loses $8M foreclosure

The developer of an office complex off of Interstate 595 in Davie that has sat empty for years lost a $7.9 million foreclosure judgment.

Jacksonville-based Everbank (NYSE: EVER) won the judgment after a non-jury trial against co-owners Diamond III and Lefta Enterprises over a $6.5 million mortgage, plus interest and fees. The judgment was also rendered against Boca Raton developers Kenneth E. Richardson and Terry McKerchie.

The loan was originated by Bank of Florida – Southeast, which later failed.

The three buildings totaling 39,043 square feet at 10230 State Road 84 are set for online auction Nov. 9. They were completed in 2009, but they are so empty that a passerby can look through the windows and see out the other side.

Bank wins foreclosure on 20-acre Homestead site

A vacant 20-acre site in Homestead is headed to auction after its owner lost a $4.4 million foreclosure judgment.

First-Citizens Bank & Trust Co. won the judgment against Toptrez LLC over a $2.4 million mortgage, plus interest and fees. The loan was originally issued by Sun American Bank, which later failed.

The agricultural site at the southeast corner of Southwest 336th Street and Southwest 172nd Avenue is set for online auction Oct. 17.

Toptrez, managed by Alicio Pina, Nirma Pina and Thomas Mesa, paid $3.2 million for the property in 2004.

Hollywood marina trades for $19M below mortgage in short sale

The foreclosure lawsuit against the Wilshire Marina in Hollywood was resolved, but it took a short sale at $19.3 million below its mortgage to settle it.

In early 2010, Gulf Coast Bank & Trust Co. filed a foreclosure lawsuit against Wilshire Marina LLC and managing members R. Jeffrey Arnold, Paul D’Agnese and Taraneah Sirang. It concerned a $22.7 million mortgage originally issued by Alpharetta Ga.-based Integrity Bank, which later failed.

Fortunately for Gulf Coast Bank, the loan had loss-sharing protection with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

The 0.9-acre marina with 22 boat slips at 2308 N. Ocean Drive was recently sold for $3.37 million to Oceanside Marina LLC. That’s an 85 percent discount from its mortgage. It’s also well below the $18 million the marina traded for in 2006.

CubeSmart buys storage facility to resolve bankruptcy

CubeSmart purchased a storage facility that it was leasing in Leisure City to resolve the foreclosure and bankruptcy of its landlord.

LSREF2 Baron 2 LLC, an affiliate of Dallas-based Lone Star Funds, filed a $3.9 million foreclosure lawsuit in May against Floridian Vest over the the 67,085-square-foot self-storage facility on 2.2 acres at 28525 S.W. 157th Ave. CubeSmart is operating the facility.

The borrower subsequently filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

The bankruptcy also included two Atlanta-area industrial properties. In August, the bankruptcy court approved CubeSmart’s motion to acquire all three properties for $13.25 million, including $3.19 million for the Leisure City complex. That would make the transaction similar to a short sale.

The mortgage was subsequently released. LSREF2 previously bought the loan at a discount from Regions Bank.

Fashion Mall pulled out of bankruptcy with new capital

Foreclosure sought against Boca Raton law firm

Boca Raton law firm Seiden, Alder, McLeod & Goodman P.A. has been hit with a foreclosure lawsuit by Zions First National Bank over a $1.38 million mortgage, as was reported on Thursday.

It targets the 13 office condos in the Beacon Square Professional Campus, at 7795 N.W. Beacon Square Boulevard. The U.S. Small Business Administration also has a $1.1 million mortgage on that property.

Check out our Foreclosure Database to view previous foreclosure filings and search by county or property type.